Signaling system for railways.



N S Q SQ. PATENTED JUNE 2,1908. G-SH. LAY.

SIGNALING SYSTEM FOR RAILWAYS.

APPLICATION FILED FEB. 27, 1908.

l vi/ilmooco UNITED STATES,

PATENT OFFIOE.

A OHARLES'H. LAY, oF'JEasEY orrY, NEW JERSEY, ASSIGNOR TO THE UNIONswrron & SIGNAL GOMPANY,,,OF swIssvALE,PENNSYLVANIA, A CORPORATION OF.PENNSYLVANIA.

' SI NALING SYS EM FOR RAILWAYS.

Specificationof Letters Patent.

Patented June 2, 1908.

Application filed-Febru iaxy'r, mos. Serial No. 418,067.

To all whom it may concern.

Be it known that .I, CHARLEscitizen of the United States, residinginJersoy (.ity, Hudson county, New Jersey, have T invented certain new anduseful Improvements in Signaling Systems for Railways, of which thefollowi fis a specification. My invention 12% erally known in the art asoverlap systems. In such overlap systems, as is generally known, thesignal for a block section may be held inits danger position by a train,after I the train has passed out of the block section 15 for any desiredlengthof track succeeding-the block section. For exam le, the signalfora j blocksection may be hel in its danger posi- .tionby a train whileit-is passing throughany.

I willdescribe a signaling-systemembody-' 3o ing my-invention and sthenpoint out the novel features thereof m a claim.

. In the accompanying drawings,

wayhaving a signaling system applied thereto embodying my invention.Figs. 2 and? are similar views also embodying my invention. In Fig. 1the overlap is forone block section; in Fig. 2,, for two blocks; and

' in Fig. 3, for five blocks. 40 Similar lettersof reference'designatecorresponding parts in all of the figures. Referring HOW'i/O thedrawings: 1, 2 and3 designate block sectionsof a railway A. Theblocksections' are formed in the usual manner by inserting suitable insulatedjoints i in one or both of the track-rails inv amanner well understoodin the art. In the drawings I have shown both track rails as being insuj-' lated. Each block section 1, 2, 3, etc., is

provided with a track circuit which, as is well known in the art,comprises a. suitable.

source'of current, C, C G etc., whichmay be either direct or alternatingcurrent, and here diagrammatically illustrated as a batmay, the trackrails of the blocksection or I LAY, a

ates toysignaling systems -for railways, and particularly to what isgen- Figure 1 is. a diagrammatic view of'a portion of a 'rallportions-ofthemyand asujitablerelay device r, 1' ,,etc., which is'operable by thecurrent froin the source C, C C etc. The relay device r, etc., is herediagrammatically illus-' trated as an ordinary magnet constructed toattract. and release its armature a, according erably this railwaysignal will be anyof the well known automatic types which comprise a towhether'it is energized'or deenergizedl signal device (blade-and coloredlenses) for givingindications during the day and night, and a motordevice'for moving the signal device from one positionto another. Anexample of such a railway signal maybe found in U. S. Patents Nos.600,385, granted March 8, 1898, to V. K. Spicen, 611,943, grantedOctober 4, 1898, to J. G. Schreuder; 358,521, granted March 1, 1887, toG. Westinghouse, Jr.'; and 745,309, granted November 24,

. 1903, to J P. Coleman. In these-examples the signaldevice'is in. theform of acounterweighted bladewhichha'sa normal bias to ahorizontal-position, which positionis ;termed the danger position'and isgenerally an indication to an engineman that the block sectionat whichthe signal is locatedis occupied'by a train. The motor device isemployed to move the blade toan inclinedposi tion, which position istermedthe clear or safety position and is generally an indicaalonto-anengineman that the block section- .is free of trains.

. The operation of the motor device to move the counterweighted blade toits clear position, takes place when the "signaling circuit as it istermed,,is closed, and-in this ,point and armature ofseveral relays, asthe case may be. Obviously, if the signalingsignaling circuit isincluded the front contact rCi-IOllit isopen at any point the .motordevice will not operate to move the counterweighted .blade from itsdanger position. As is wellknown, solong as a pair Of wheels and theiraxle of a train bridges therails of any block section, they shunt. thecurrent from thesource C, thuscausing the relay 11 ofthat block to bedenergized and-release'its armalot 60 z'ontal or danger position. Assoon as the placed beyond the signal at about the block section wherethe overlap is to end, and, if

desired, this arrangement of these sources of current may be followed inpractice.

Referring to Fig. 1,-B, B B etc. designate the several sources ofcurrent (here shown asbeing batteries) in the .signaling circuits forthe railway signals S, S S etc. The "signaling circuit'for the signal Smay be traced as follows; Starting from one pole of the source B it is,wires 10, 11, front contact and armature of the relay 1' for blocksection 2,wires 12, 13 and 14,front contact and armature of relay r ofblock section 1, wires 15, 16, signal mechanism of-the railway signal S,and wire 17 back to the othersource B. The .fsignaling. circu1t fo'r'therailway'signal S ma be traced as follows:

'- Starting from one p0 e of the source B? it is,

" relay r for block section 3, wires 20, 21 and back to' the other poleof the source B wires 18, 19, front contact and armature of 11, frontcontact and armature of relay 1, for block section 2, wires 12 and 22 tosignal mechanismof railway signal S and wire 23 circuits for the othersignals may be similarly traced. It will be seen from this figure thatwith no train in any block section, all the circuits will be'closed andthe counterweighted blades of the railway signals S, S S etc. will be intheir clear positions. 'Assume now a train in blocksection 1. The relay7" of .that section will be denergized by reason of the wheels and axlesof the train shunting current from it. Hence,- it will release itsarmature, the signal circuit for the railway signal S will be broken atthat point and the counterweighted blade of the railway signal S will bemoved to its horizontal position. This condition will be maintained solong as the train is in block section 1.' When the train enters blocksection2 it will shunt current from the'relay r of that block section,

which relay, becoming deenergized, releases its armature and opens thesignaling circuit .of railway signalS at that point, permitting itscounterweighted blade to go to its horitrain leaves block section 1, therelay thereof pole of the:

The

,wire 34 to the sourceB. when a train is in any of the block sections1-,

seen-e9 ism of this railway signal will not move its counterweightedblade to its inclined position because the signaling circuit is open atthe front point in relay 1 of the block section 2. Thus thecounterweighted blade of railway signal S will remain in its horizontalor danger position until after the train has completely moved out ofblock section 2. Thus the overlap distance which the counterweightedblades of railway signal S is held in its horizontal or danger positionin one block section, and therefore the counterweighted blade will beheld in its horizontal or danger osition so long as a train or any partof it 1s in either of two adjacent block sections. The same is trueregarding railway signal S and the counterweighted blade thereof willnot be moved to its inclined or; safety position until the train hascomletel r assed out of block section 3 Referring now to Fig. 2, thesignaling circuit for any one of the railway signals is carried throughthe front contacts and armatures of the relays for three block sections,

that is, through the front contact and armature of the relay of theblock section for which the railway signal is rovided and through thefront contacts an arinatures of the relays ofthe two succeeding blocksec.

tions, thus making the overlap distance inwhich the counterweightedblade is held in'lits horizontal or .danger position two block sections.naling circuit of railwaysignal S. This circuit starting from the sourceof current B may be tracedas follows: Wires 24, 25, front contact andarmature of relay 7' of block section 3, wires 26, 2] and 28, frontcontact and armature of relay r of block section 2, wires 29, 30 and 31,front contact and armature of relay 1" of block section 1, Wires 32, 33,opera ting mechanism of the railwa signal, and It w' be seen that 2 M3,therelay thereof will be denergized to release its armature and thusmake a break in the signalin Take, for example, the sig-.- I

circuit for the railway signal S. -The signzfiing circuit for railwaysignal.

.S may be traced as follows: Starting from the source B it is, wires 35,36, front contact and armature of relay 1" for block section 45,

wires 37, 38 and 25, front contact and arma-I ture of relay r of blocksection 3, wires 26, 27

and 28, front contact and armature of relay 1 T of block section 2,wires 29, 39, operating mechanism of the railway signal S and wire 40 tothe source B The signaling circuits of the other railway signals may becorrespondingly traced.

' Referring now to Fig. 3, the signaling circuit for anyone railwaysignal is carried throu h thefront contacts and armatures of the re aysof the five .succeeding block sections succeeding the block section forwhich the railway signal is provided as well as the front contact and'armature of the block sec-Y tion for which it is rovided. The signalingcircuit for the railway signal S 'may' be traced asfollows; Startingfrom the source B it is, wires 41, 42 front contact, and arma ture-ofrelay 7" of block section v6, wires'43, 44

and 45, frontcontact and armature ofrelay of block section 5, wires 46,47 "arid48, f'ront contact and armature of relay r 701.

block section 4, wires .49, 50 and 151,: front contact and armature ofrelay r fof-block section 3, wires- 52, 53,154, frontcontact andarmature of relay r of block section'2, wires 1 55, 56 and 57, frontcontact'andarinature of 15 relay 1" of block section 1,,w'ires 58, 59oper atiiig mechanism of railway signal- S, and

wire 60 to source B. Thus it will be seen that a train'in either 'ofthe-block sections ;1

to 6 will'causea break to be niad'e-"in the sig naling circuit, andhence the counterweighted blade of the railway signal will be" held itshorizontal or danger n'aling circuit for the rai way signal-S niaybetraced as follows: Starting from the source Bf, it-is wires'fi'l,62,1frbnt contact and armature of relay r ofblock section'7,

wires 63, 64-and 42, front'c'ontact and armature of relay r ofblocksecti'onfi, wires 43,

44 and 45, front contact and armature ofrelay 1 70f block section 5,wires '46, 47 and 48, front contact and armature of relay 1 ofblock-section 4, wires 49, 5OJa'rid5-1, front contact and armature ofrelay ,r jofjblock sec tion 3 wires, 52, 53 and 54, front contact andarmature of relay r of block section's, wires mental or .5 dan ger.

-;to-have an overlap;

Of course various 'modifications may be nal S and wire 66 to soi'irceBfl- Thus it will be seen that a train'in e'itherofblock sections 2 to?will cause a breakainfthe signaling circu it.'of railway si na1-S,"thus' causin' its signaling circuit is carried through the relays ofas many block sections as desired made by which the grinciple'ofimyiinven- 'tion m'aybe'embodie' in the nianydifferent signaling systemsnow well knowni-n theart.

-What I'cIaim as myinvention is'\ In'a" signaling system, thecombination with a series of closed track circuits each cornprisi n g arelay having a single front contact and an armature a railway signal for1 each block section, and a signaling circuit for; each railway signalcomprising. an independent source of currentandfthe single contactpoints-of two or more'relays of the closed track circuitsj -1- Intestimony whereof-I have signed my name toj thlsspeclficatlon in thepresence of twosubscribed witnesses; I CHARLES H. LAY. .j Witnesses! 1A. HAMILTON,

"C; W. VAN NOSTRAND.

iii

55, 65. operating mechanism of railway sig I

